Catch Me If I Fall
by ScienceOrFaith
Summary: Rachel Berry is a 28 year old Broadway performer. She won three Tony awards for her role as Elphaba in Wicked. Eight years ago, she left the love of her life behind. Finn Hudson, after being broken up with, enlisted into the army. Now, Captain Hudson feels that the only thing missing is his soulmate. What happens when Finn walks into Rachel's life again?


**Present Day**

_Laughing, Rachel walked to answer her door. Hanging out with Brody was something she never expected to do. She wanted to focus on her studies while she was away at school. "Oh gosh, I wish I went to your school. That sounds amazing." She turned the knob, never expecting to see her fiancé', the love of her life, her soul mate, standing there. "Hey Rachel."_

Rachel jumped at the sound of her alarm. She looked at her clock, reading 4 a.m. _Another early morning,_ she thought to herself as she began to get out of bed. She yawned, ignoring the headache felt coming on. She'd been having that dream more and more lately. It was beginning to get annoying. She turned on the hot water as she prepared for her shower. She was honestly running on autopilot. It was like this every morning after the dream. _That _dream. The one that always reminded her of the day her ex-fiancé showed up empty handed, pretending that he didn't leave her at a train station to travel to New York alone. Making her remember the day when she said the one thing she hoped to never say to Finn. _We're done._

She got out of the shower and put on her regular outfit for a day like this: black sweatpants, NYADA t-shirt, and the Yale sweatshirt Quinn had given her on their first reunion ten years ago. "Ten years. It's been ten years and I still can't get over him."

"It's because you're supposed to be together, Rachel. If only he'd stop being so stubborn and realize that."

Rachel laughed at her roommate, smiling for the first time that morning. "Thanks, Quinn. I'm glad someone understands."

Smiling, Quinn hugged Rachel as she kissed her cheek. "It's what best friends are for. Stealing your clothes, eating your food, and talking about guys being stubborn assholes. It comes with the territory."

Rachel nodded, looking at the clock. "Why are you even awake?"

"I went to sleep as I was grading papers. You'd be surprised at the amount of bad grammar college students' use. Obviously they haven't mastered the art of spellcheck or grammar check."

Laughing, Rachel grabbed a muffin from the cabinet. "They aren't as skilled as we were. Oh well. I have to get to rehearsal early. Winning a Tony isn't easy."

"You're Rachel Berry, Broadway extraordinaire. You already have three. You've got this. The show will be amazing."

The brunette smiled and nodded. "You're right. I'm Rachel Barbra Berry. Star of _Wicked _on Broadway. Nothing can stop me." She thought about her last acceptance speech and smiled. "I have to go. There's a reason I'm so good at what I do and slacking isn't one of them. Later, Fabray."

"Later, Berry."

…

_Rachel walked off of the stage, devastated. Did she really just do that? Did she really just break up with Finn? She said so herself. He made her feel so special. So _sexy_. Did she really want to leave that all behind? Shaking her head, Rachel turned around and began to pace backstage. He was and will always be her first love. He showed her what a man should be when he left her at that train station. Could she bring herself to do it? "Get yourself together, Rachel. Either you can be with him or you can't. Make up your mind."_

_She looked onto the stage at Finn, wondering why he kept running. _Was it something I did? Said? _Taking a deep breath, Rachel did the hardest thing she always finds herself having to do. She walked away from Finn Hudson, again, and wondered why bad things always seem to happen to her._

"Rach? Are you okay?"

Taking a deep breath, Rachel looked at her director. "Sorry, Tom. There's just... a lot on my mind today." It wasn't a lie. There was a lot she was thinking about. The emotions she felt when she left him _both _times were all coming back to her.

Looking around to make sure no one was looking; Tom mouthed 'Finn?' getting a confirming nod from Rachel. "Okay, guys. Let's run through this scene one more time. You okay, Shorty?"

Smiling at her nickname, Rachel stood up and nodded. She stood up, waiting for her cues. This was one of her favorite scenes in the entire show. She held Andrew's hand. She's loved the relationship between Elphaba and Fiyero since she could remember. They stood center stage at they heard their cues. "I just wish..."

"What?"

"I wish I could be beautiful… for you."

"_I'll never be as pretty as Quinn is, Kurt. I don't know what to do. He's going to leave me."_

"_No he won't Rachel! The only thing separating you and Finn is your insecurity. He doesn't think about Quinn as much as you think he does. He's too busy talking about how much he loves you and how he wishes you would love yourself as much as he loves you."_

"_A-Are you sure?"_

"_Positive."_

The brunette's chest tightened. Throat constricting, this scene always affected her. Elphaba was always so happy when she was with Fiyero. He made her feel so special and it reminded her of Finn so much that she didn't know what to do. She couldn't start crying in the middle of the scene. It was extremely unprofessional. Rachel Berry did _not_ act unprofessionally. It was not what she needed. She began to control herself as she looked at her surroundings. Practice today wasn't going to be as positive as she'd hoped.


End file.
